Portrait of a Black Rose
by slytherinphoenix116
Summary: This is the tale of a young girl who was betrayed by someone she trusted, of a young woman who turned to the Dark to escape her pain and became the Dark Lord’s most trusted lieutenant.  This is the story of Bellatrix Black, the girl who wasn’t always evil
1. Prologue

The crackling fire sent light dancing across the room; shadows falling on the face of the young girl sitting stiffly on a chair in front of the hearth. Her eyes seemed to burn brighter than the fire itself, though her hair was as dark as night. The harsh lines and resolute expression on her face seemed strange for one so young. The girl was no older than six, but even at that young age, she seemed to emanate a strange energy, making others wary of her. The girl's eyes drifted from the fire to a light on the small bed in the corner of the room, and the tiny girl who slept there. Her small chest was rising and falling gently, her white blond hair strewn in soft tendrils across her face.

Footsteps approached the room, making their way stealthily down the stone hallway outside the bedroom. The door creaked slowly open, and an older girl with chestnut brown hair tiptoed into the room. She stopped abruptly when she saw the chair in front of the fire and its occupant.

"Bella," she hissed, her voice barely above a whisper. "You're still awake?"

The black haired girl tore her eyes from the dancing flames to respond. "Yes Andy, I couldn't fall asleep. I could hear Mum and you fighting downstairs."

Andy's face darkened. "I'm sorry you had to hear that," She murmured, wincing, although she knew this wasn't the first argument her little sister had witnessed. The elder was-in her mind- bigots, who considered themselves superior to everyone around them because they were "pureblood" wizards, coming from a long magical line.

"Why do you always have to make them angry?" Bella snapped, her eyes full of hurt and anger.

"Bella, I…" Andy trailed off with a sigh. She knew it was useless to try to explain, her sister would never understand.

Silently, Andy wrapped her arms around her younger sister, pulling her close to her chest. At first Bella remained stiff; her frame seemed to resist the comforting embrace. But after a moment, she seemed to collapse, finally letting down her defenses, and her tiny body began to convulse with silent tears.

For a few moments, silence filled the room as a communication beyond words passed between the two, the elder soothing the younger.

When Bella's sobs began to subside, she turned her tear stained face upward, her dark eyes meeting the brown of her sister's.

"Why. Why do you have to go?" She whimpered, her voice barely audible over the crackle of the brightly burning fire.

Andy could only hold Bella's fierce gaze for a moment, and then glanced away. She studied the ceiling, tracing the stone cracks with her eyes, before answering.

"Bella, you know I have to go. Everyone goes when they turn eleven. You'll be there too in a few years," Andy instantly regretted her words, as she realized that five years must seem like an eternity to Bella. "I'll be back for Christmas and Easter. You can always send me an owl while I'm there. I'll tell you everything about Hogwarts; I'll owl you every week!" She said hurriedly, desperately trying to reassure her sister.

"Every day!" Bella insisted, the beginnings of a smile playing across her lips.

Andy rolled her eyes. "Every other day, and that's my final offer," She replied playfully.

"Deal," Bella said, the smile now firmly in place upon her dark features.

"Come on, let's get you to bed," Andy said, her smile not reaching her eyes. She scooped Bella up in her arms and began carrying Bella to her bed.

Bella gave a squeal of excitement at being carried before she was laid gently onto the soft mattress of her bed. Bella pulled the sheets over her, leaving only her head uncovered.

Andy sat down on the bed next to Bella, and stroked her hair for a moment.

"Promise me you'll take care of Cissy while I'm one," Andy murmured, her voice serious. "You'll be the big sister while I'm gone. You'll have to look out for each other."

"I promise," Bella said emphatically, bobbing her head up and down, her dark curls bouncing in the firelight.

"I'll be back again before you know it!" Andy added, realizing that she was trying to convince herself as much as her sister. "I'll always be there for you, even if I'm not here. Understand?" She turned away from her sister for a moment to brush away a tear that she didn't wanted Bella to see.

Bella nodded once more, saying nothing.

"Alright, good night then," Andy whispered, kissing her sister gently on her head.

Andromeda walked slowly to her own bed in the room the three sisters shared. She hated the thought of leaving Bella here with the horrible people who, regretfully, were their parents. She knew that Bella, even at the age of six, could take care of herself well enough because she was strangely stoic for her age. But still… she felt incredibly guilty as she laid down on her own bed, pulling the sheets around her-more for the comforting embrace they provided than for warmth.

She knew that she wasn't at fault for going away to school, but she felt guilty regardless; guilty that part of her was incredibly, ecstatically happy to be leaving here, leaving the hatred and disapproval that had been much of her life for the last eleven years. Her parents had never been abusive outright, but they weren't kind people, caring more for wealth than for their own children. Andy had always taken care of her sisters, acting for them as the mother she never truly had. What would happen to them once she was gone? What would happen to Narcissa, only four, who still desperately hoped for her parents love and approval-something her two older sisters had already learned was futile.

After a few moments, her eyes finally began to droop. Her fatigue overwhelmed her worries, and the fire in the hearth burned itself out.


	2. Chapter 1: Mornings and Tears

"Bella, Bella, it's time to wake up!"

The combination of an excited, high pitched voice and someone jumping up and down on her bed proved sufficient to rouse Bellatrix Black from her slumber. She pulled her covers over her head, trying desperately to block out the light streaming through her eyelids.

"Ugh! What do you want? What time is it?" a groggy voice moaned from under the coverlet.

"Come on, Bella! You have to get ready. We're going to Kings Cross soon. Don't you remember? Today's your first day of school!" Narcissa, Bellatrix's younger sister, pleaded with her from the world outside the darkness created by the covers pulled tightly over head. _That _got Bella awake! How could she have forgotten? Today was September 1, the day she went to Hogwarts for the first time. She abruptly threw back the sheets around her, eliciting a startled squeak from the tiny blonde girl seated on her bed.

"Good morning, Cissy," she replied, an impish smile upon her face as she picked her sister up and swung her gently around before putting her back on the bed. The littler girl looked delighted.

"It's really cold out here," Bella murmured to herself as her bare feet made contact with the cold stone floor. Her nightgown, though made of expensive silk, wasn't particularly warm, and she pulled it more tightly around her as she stooped and pulled a pair of woolen slippers out from under her bed.

Smiling slightly at the sight of her overly excited sibling bouncing around the room like some strange sort of wind up toy, she grabbed her sister's arm, halting her progress.

"Hey, Miss Energy, why don't you go wake up Andy?" she whispered conspiratorially, gesturing toward the smaller room off of their own. "She needs to get ready too"

Narcissa nodded fervently before sprinting off to the room Bella had indicated. Bella couldn't help but laugh; her older sister wasn't a morning person.

"1…2…..3…." Bella thought to herself. "Any second now..

Right on cue, a yelp sounded from her older sister's room. "Cissy! What are you doing?"

A pause. "Did Bella put you up to this?" Andy asked, in a more amused tone.

A satisfied smirk crept over Bella's face 'Alright, I've had my fun, now I really _do _need to get ready now"

She had her trunk mostly packed, having done so the night before, but she still checked it over, ensuring that nothing had been overlooked. All her books were there; her parents had taken her and Andy to Diagon Alley a few weeks previously to purchase them.

'Where is my wand? I know it's here somewhere." She wondered. Her eyes squinted as she looked around the room. Finally her eyes landed on her wand, oak eleven and a half inches, lying on the counter of the bathroom connected to her and Cissy's bedroom.

'How in Merlin's name did it get over _there_? She wondered as she ambled over to the bathroom, still slightly groggy. Snatching her wand from the mahoghany countertop, she chanced a look in the mirror that hung above it. A small groan escaped her lips. Her thick black hair was curling wildly in every direction; it seemed to have a life of its own. She tried to force a brush through its tangled depths, but to no avail. The knots and tangles simply refused to be tamed. Accepting defeat, Bella tied her hair back as best she could with a small leather tie, and splashed her face with water from the sink.

"That's about as good as it's going to get" the mirror added unhelpfully as Bella dried her face with a soft towel. Giving the mirror an annoyed look, she pulled a clean shirt, skirt and rcbes, black of course, from a wardrobe and quickly pulled them on, knowing the door was shut and she was alone in the room.

Closing her trunk, Bella grabbed the case of Libra, her grey spotted owl, and attached it to the top of her trunk, making it easier to carry both simultaneously. She was about to make her way out the door when she remembered something. She quickly ran back to her nightstand, pried open a small drawer hidden in the back of it, and pulled out a small red rose pendant on a delicate silver chain.

It had been a present from Andy a few months earlier when Bella had turned eleven. After the stuffy celebrations and formalities of her birthday were finished and Bella was lying in bed, Andy had crept over and sat down next to her.

_"Psst. Are you still awake?" Andy asked, whispering so she didn't wake their younger sister._

"_Yeah" Bella said, turning over to look at her sister. She hadn't been asleep at all, or even tired for that matter. _

"_Alright then" Andy continued, still in hushed tones, "this is for you, for a birthday gift". _

_She pulled from behind her back a small box coated in red velvet and handed it to Bella. _

_Now Bella was excited. She gently took the box and opened the lid. Inside was the most beautiful necklace she had ever seen, a tiny, lifelike rose colored in shades of deepest red. There was also a note, written in a neat tidy hand she recognized as Andy's. It read "To beautiful Bella, for luck, with love, from your sister Andy"._

"_Th.Thank you" Bella murmured, astounded by the beauty of the necklace. _

_  
"You're welcome. 'Bella' means beautiful in Latin; did you know that?" Andy said absent mindedly, running her fingers affectionately through the black tangles of Bella's hair. "Whenever you wear it, I want you to think of me, alright?" _

_Bella nodded "I will. And thank you again"_

"_You're welcome again, and good night" Andy slipped off Bella's bed and padded softly to her own, her bare feet making nearly no noise on the smooth stone floor_

Bella gently undid the clasp and pulled the necklace around her neck before fastening the chain once more. She slipped it under her robes, where it could remain unseen, grabbed her trunk, and pulled it out of her room and into the hallway overlooking a grand set of stairs.

A soft crash and a muttered oath made Bella turn around, only to see Andy rying to pull her own trunk out of her room. She looked a bit comical, her face red and contorted into a scowl, her eyes still fighting away the last remnants of sleep.

"Think you could give me a hand here?" She said,with a touch of annoyance,

Giving a very long, dramatic, and fake sigh, Bella set her own trunk and owl down gently and trotted over to help her sister with the huge trunk she was attempting to squeeze through the doorway. Bella grabbed one end, Andy the other, and between the two of them they were able to haul the gargantuan thing out of the door and set it upright on its wheels. Bella was quite small for her age, but she was quite strong as well.

"What do you have in there? Rocks?" Bella questioned incredulously, staring at the trunk in question.

"Of course not", Andy retorted, blushing slightly "Don't be silly! I'm just taking a few more classes than usual this year, so I have a few more books, that's all"

"A few?" Bella muttered, trying not to laugh "try an entire library"

Bella dodged the balled up sock that Andy sent flying at her, as she tried and failed to keep a straight face herself.

"Oh, put a sock in it, would you!"

This was too much for Bella, who burst into a fit of maniacal giggles. "We..better…get…Cissy" Bella got out between bursts of laughter.

"Right" Andy said, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself. Then she called "Cissy! Come on, we're leaving for Kings Cross."

Their little sister appeared in front of them so quickly that if they didn't know better, they might have thought she had apparated. Her white blond hair looked slightly windswept, but she looked positively delighted.

Both her sisters could understand her excitement about going to Kings Cross, even though she herself was not attending Hogwarts this year. Although their family was wealthy, they rarely left the house, were taught by a private tutor, and didn't often get to see or interact with other children.

She hid it well, but Bella herself was excited at the prospect of meeting new people at Hogwarts. Her sisters were her closest friends, and always would be, but it certainly couldn't hurt to meet people nearer to her own age.

"Andromeda! Bellatrix! Narcissa! Get down here this instant!". Their mother's voice pierced their light mood,

Smiles suddenly disappeared from the three faces as the two eldest struggled to pull their trunks down the huge staircase as fast as possible and not trip over themselves or Cissy in the process. A few moments later, they stood uncomfortably in the foyer, trunks, cages, and all.

Mrs. Black eyed the three disapprovingly. "Andromeda! Do you not have the sense to find something to wear that isn't covered in wrinkles. You're going to Hogwarts, not some child's play park, and I don't want people to think we're some kind of vagabonds!"

Andy's face turned red, and her eyes narrowed slightly, but she managed to keep her mouth shut, although it seemed to Bella she was having a great deal of difficulty doing so.

Knowing what was coming next, Bella tried to keep her eyes anywhere but on her mother's face, her eyes flitting to the many elaborate paintings which adorned the walls.

"Bellatrix!" her mother's scathing voice snapped, pulling Bella's eyes sharply back to her own cold, grey ones. "Are you incapable of doing anything about that mess you call hair? It looks like something had made a nest in there!'

"I'm sorry, mother" Bella replied obediently. She had learned long ago that it was unwise to show any sign of how much her mother's sharp words stung. If people knew that you cared, it made it easier for them to hurt you.

"Well, there isn't any time for you to remedy the situation, is there? She scathed. "I suppose you'll have to go as you are, humiliating as that will be. You're father is busy with Ministry business, so I am taking you to the platform myself"

Without so much as a glance at her youngest daughter, Mrs. Black turned sharply and gave a motion for the three girls to follow her.

Although their mother rarely rebuked Narcissa as she did Bella and Andy, she decided instead to ignore her almost completely. Bella wasn't sure what she thought was worse, the scathing comments or nothing at all. All she knew for certain was that Andy had always been more of a mother to Narcissa and herself than Drusella Black had ever been.

Dragging their trunks behind them, Andy and Bella trudged down the hallway, trying to keep up with their mother's brisk, clipped pace. As she walked, Bella noticed that Cissy's lower lip was quivering slightly, and her eyes were glistening. Bella sighed, but stopped nonetheless and pulled her sister into a tight one-armed embrace.

"Don't worry," she whispered, pulling Narcissa gently along with her. "It won't be so bad. You'll have Tiffy and Ms. Alty here for company, and you'll see us at Christmas, that's not so long." Tiffy was their house elf and Ms. Alty had been their tutor for as long as Bella could remember, and both had always been kind to the three sisters.

Cissy smiled weakly at her. "Thanks," she murmured softly.

"Come on," Bella whispered gently, "We have to catch up"

The two ran to catch up with their mother, reaching them just in time to watch their backs go up in flames as Bella and Narcissa snatched handfuls of powder from a silver bowl on the mantleplace and threw it into the fire, which turned a bright, emerald green.

"King Cross!" the two voices shouted in unison.


	3. Chapter 2: Goodbyes and Greetings

_A/N First of all, I haven't gotten any huge paychecks recently from the sales of book 7, so I have been forced to come to the conclusion that I don't , in fact, own Harry Potter, and I am just playing in JK Rowlings world (small annoying voice in back of head: WHAT? Magic's not real??; Rational mind: Shut up!)_

_Anyhow, thanks are in order for my reviewers so far, __Loxodonta-Magica__megsiroo__, and __meme.chose_

_Also, to my wonderful betas Cynthia and Micaella, I give large amounts of thanks and ice cream. Well, I would, except the ice cream would melt.. Oh well, enjoy the chapter_

The green flames encompassed Bella, who had one hand on her trunk and the other firmly on Cissa's arm. A moment later, they stepped out of a less familiar fireplace onto the hard, paved floor of a small room off of King's Cross station.

This chamber had been built to satisfy the insistent complaints by pureblood families at being forced to use Muggle transport to get their children to King's Cross, and, more specifically, Platform 9 ¾ to depart for Hogwarts.

Eventually, the Ministry had given in and built this room, which was magically connected directly to the platform. It was equipped with dozens of fireplaces, one next to the other, so that wizards and witches from around the country could Floo straight here.

Bella pulled her sister, Cissy, alongside her as she made her way through the crowd of parents and students, trying to catch a sight of the other half of their family.

Finally! A flash of brown hair, pale skin, and black cloak caught her eye as Andy and Mrs. Black stopped for a moment to look around, giving the two younger girls a chance to catch up.

Mrs. Black's eyes narrowed. "There you are! Where in Merlin's name have you been?" she snapped.

"Got lost in the crowd," Bella panted in response.

"Well, you'd do well not to do so again," her mother sniffed. Her eyes shifted so that she was addressing Andy and Bella at once. "You have your tickets?" Two nods. "All your things?"

Bella nodded again in sync with her sister, thinking to herself that even if they _had_ forgotten something, she highly doubted they would return to retrieve it at this point anyway seeing as the train was leaving in fifteen minutes.

"Alright then, I have other things I must attend to so I can't afford to spend any more time standing around here. Andromeda, make sure Bellatrix gets safely onto the train," her eyes lingered for a moment on each, before shifting abruptly away.

"Narcissa," she barked, "come along." And with that, she turned on her heel and walked sharply away, her fine robes billowing in the slight autumn wind.

Sending a cautionary glance her mother's way, Narcissa quickly threw her arms around both of her sisters. "I'll miss you two," she mumbled. Then she pulled away, gave Bella a look that said. "_Remember, you promised to write" _and sprinted to catch up with the foul tempered woman ahead of her.

When their mother was out of earshot, Andy shot Bella a grin, a stark change from her apathetic expression of a few moments ago. "We finally can relax, huh?" she said, considerably lightening the mood between the two of them. Bella returned the smile as best she could; she knew what Andy meant. They had to be consistently prim and proper whenever they were in their mother's presence- well, as prim and proper as it was possible for them to be.

"Well, we have about fifteen minutes until the train leaves, so we should get our baggage aboard and find ourselves a compartment. Do you want me to sit with you?" Andy continued, in the no nonsense voice that drove Bella absolutely crazy.

Bella resisted a strong urge to roll her eyes. _'Yeah, I really want to be babysat by my know-it-all prefect sister on the first day of school. Way to build up a reputation!"_

"No!" Bella answered, perhaps a bit more forcefully than necessary. Not wanting to hurt her sister's feelings, she quickly added, "Er, it probably wouldn't look good for me to be tagging along with my big sister. I don't want everyone to think I'm some kind of baby."

"Ahh, I see," Andy replied good naturedly. "Don't worry, I understand. If you're going to be all right….." she paused, looking pointedly at Bella, who replied with an annoyed sigh.

"Yes, I will be"

".. then I think I'll go look for some old friends from last year to sit with. I assume you can find your way to the train alright," she added playfully, gesturing at the steam engine a mere ten feet away.

"No, really?" Bella replied sarcastically. "Actually, I do think I'll need a map"

Andy sighed. "There's the Bella I know and love. Alright. I'll see you in Hogsmeade then," Andy turned to the left, and began walking through the mass of people, scanning the crowd for familiar faces.

Bella had been on a train before, but she had never really felt comfortable with the idea. What if a bit of track got damaged? At the speed these trains go, that could be a death sentence. Deciding rather quickly that that was one train of thought she did _not _want to follow, she pushed it to the back of her mind, and pulled her trunk towards the baggage compartment.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a girl about Bella's age with flaming red hair barreled into her and knocked her to the ground. Bella, annoyed, pulled herself and turned to face the girl, thinking of a few choice things she wanted to say. But she stopped herself at the girl's expression. She looked honestly guilty and horrified that she had knocked over someone she'd never met before.

"Sweet Merlin, I'm sorry!" the girl said. "I just tripped, and fell, and, well, you know the rest," she shot Bella an apologetic half smile, and then jumped to her feet before extending her hand down to Bella, who still lay on the ground. "Here, let me help you up."

Bella took the hand offered to her and proceeded to pull herself into a standing position.

"Again, I'm really sorry. I've always been a real klutz. Oh, my name's Bran, by the way, well Branwen, if you want to get specific, but no one c-"

Bran was cut off by another voice, similar to hers, but distinctly more annoyed.

"Can't you go two seconds without running into something? Ah-" The girl, who looked strangely like Bran, except with honey blond hair instead of red, seemed to have noticed Bella for the first time. "Or, as it seems," she continued, walking toward Bella, who had just gotten to her feet, "someone" She stuck out her hand and extended it toward Bella, who shook it, still a bit confused. "Sorry about all this. As you've already met my sister, I'd like to introduce myself. I'm Avalon, actually, my full name is Avalon Kelly, but, l really prefer Ava; Avalon is a bit of a mouthful, not to mention strange," she gave Bella a grin. "Bran here has developed the bad habit over the years of running into headlong into things, and people as well. But sometimes it does backfire," Ava mused, with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Sometimes she runs into something like a pole, in which case the general consensus is that she ends up worse off than the pole- Oh!"

While she had been speaking, Bran had snuck up silently from behind her and shouted in Ava's ear, making her jump.

Bella couldn't help but laugh; their bickering _was _pretty amusing. "Honestly, I think you're both insane. Call me Bella. My full name's Bellatrix, but no one except my parents call me that. Well," she continued, mirroring Ava's previous playful look, "no one calls me that more than _once_"

Now it was the sisters' turn to laugh. "Well, _Bella," _Bran put in, emphasizing the name, "I hate to break up the conversation, but we should probably get on the train, unless, of course, you _want _to stay here but in case you hadn't noticed, the train leaves in 2 minutes."

_That _got the other two girls moving. The three made a mad dash for the baggage compartment, dropped off their luggage, and rushed to the passenger portion of the train. Ava pulled open a door to the train. "Hey, Bella, want to find a compartment with Bran and me?" she asked.

Thinking that she didn't really know anyone else at the moment, well, with the exception of all the spoiled prigs who were the kids of her parents friends, and that these two girls seemed nice, a little strange, yes, but nice enough, Bella agreed. Luckily, the three found an empty compartment towards the back of the train. Just as they sat down, the train began moving with a lurch.

"Whew, that was close!" Bran panted, collapsing quite dramatically onto the red cushion of the seat. ''I can't imagine how horrible it would have been to miss the train. We would have been stuck on the platform for the rest of the year!"

Bella sighed, dropping herself onto a seat as well. "Oh calm down, Miss Dramatic. It's not like you couldn't just Floo home if you got stuck."

Ava took the seat next to Bran, facing Bella.

"So," Bella began, looking between the two of them, "are you two in the same year? I mean, you look a bit alike, but I don't think you look alike enough to be twins, and you'd have to be to be in the same year."

"Weelll," Bran said carefully, "We don't _always _look like this.

If Bella had been confused before, it was nothing to what she was now. "What in Merlin's name do you mean?" she asked, raising one eyebrow questioningly.

Bran shot Ava a quick glance, and Ava nodded. What happened next almost made Bella jump out of her seat: Bran's hair turned blonde to match Ava's, and Ava's eyes turned a vivid blue to match her sister's.

"Wow!" Bella couldn't think of anything else to say. The two girls sitting in front of her now looked _exactly _alike. If she hadn't remembered from a few moments ago that Bran was sitting on her left and Ava on her right, she wouldn't have been able to tell which was which. Something tugged at the edge of her mind, something from dozing through all the droll hours of tutoring over the last several years. And then it clicked.

"You're both metamorphagi!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide with astonishment. "That's really rare, isn't it?"

"We started looking like we did before when we were about seven. Got a bit tired of no one being able to tell us apart," Bran supplied helpfully.

Something else registered in Bella's mind, and she frowned. "Where are you from? I don't recognize the name 'Kelly' "

"We moved around a lot, until a few months ago, when Mum got a job working for the Ministry, and we moved to London," Ava answered, sighing heavily. "You probably _wouldn't _have heard of our family. Our parents are a bit.." She trailed off, obviously attempting to find a more polite way of saying what is was she wanted to say. Her sister had no such reservations.

"Barmy," Bran supplied cheerfully, oblivious to the exasperated look Ava sent her. "They're obsessed with old legends and myths, and they love traveling into the middle of nowhere to try to prove them. That's why both of us got stuck with names out of Arthur's time." Seeing the confused look on Bella's face, she clarified, "King Arthur, that is. Actually, now that I come to think of it, I think their minds are still back there as well... "

"Then you must know about a lot of legends, and other stuff like that," Bella+ commented.

Both sisters nodded grimly, and Ava added, "More than any sane person would _ever _want to know."

"Could you tell me about some of them?" Bella asked, knowing they had a long and potentially boring train ride ahead of them.

The two shared one of what Bella had decided to dub "twin looks", and then Ava started to speak.

"Well, there was this one..."

_A/N Yes, after the sorting, I'll begin going a bit faster, more summary and a bit less scene, because frankly, if I take the rest of my story at this pace (2 chapters for the course of one day) it will take me something like 400 chapters to get where I'm going, which would get quite boring at some point. If you read this, press the pretty button and leave a review. Was it good? Was it bad? Am I insane? Well...I probably already know the answer to that last one, but that's beside the point. I should have the next update up relatively soon, but keep in mind that school is starting soon, which severely limits my writing/editing/posting time, so it may be a week or so. _

_Cody_


	4. Chapter 3: Old Homes and New Houses

_A/N: Yes, I know that it's been over a year since I updated this, and I am dreadfully sorry. I won't waste your time with either excuses or promises; you've waited long enough. I hope you enjoy! ("" denotes POV change)_

After several hours, everything had become very quiet. The three girls had occupied themselves for a time by telling stories, but they eventually drifted off to separate activities, which they were now doing in silence. Bran had pulled a sketchpad and several pencils out of her traveling bag and began to draw. Bella tried to crane her neck to get a look at what Bran was drawing, but she could never seem to make it out. Ava, on the other hand, was engrossed in the pages of a thick, yellowing book called "Ministerial Power and Those Who Wielded It: A Comprehensive History." Bella rolled her eyes slightly. How could anyone find that interesting?

Truth be told, however, Bella was a bit jealous of her two new friends. "A dignified family such as the Blacks can never be seen doing something as plebian as drawing," Druella Black had sniffed one day, when Bella had asked her why she couldn't have some crayons, to make pictures like the ones hanging on the walls. Mrs. Black had also been adamant that it "wasn't at all proper to have ones nose buried in a book." As a result, Bella had neither drawing nor reading to occupy her time, and was uncomfortable bothering her new friends. She had taken to simply gazing out the window, watching the countryside go by. It had changed from cities, to smaller towns, to nothing but land, the further the train pressed on from London. They were currently in a pass created by two mountains, with rocks of various shapes and colors sticking out everywhere at strange angles. Sighing a bit, Bella shifted her position on the worn cushion. However, years of students sitting on this cushion had made the padding uneven, making it very difficult to find a comfortable place to settle down. After a few moments, she gave it up as a bad job, and went back to staring out the window, ignoring the discomfort.

In the few minutes that had passed, the scenery had shifted. They had come clear of the mountains, and was now making its way up a stony ridge. As the train turned the corner, what Bella saw made her breath catch in her throat. Hogwarts castle lay no more than a mile from her, its many towers and turrets twisting into the sky, as if they were reaching for the clouds. It seemed to be built from a similar stone as the mountains around her, and looked nearly as old, although she wasn't quite sure why she got that impression. It was as if some part of her could sense the inherent magic of the castle, pulsing like the heartbeat of a living creature. If Bella closed her eyes, she could even feel the sweet, seductive taste of magic. She knew she shouldn't be having this reaction. Andy had told her so many stories about Hogwarts, Bella had thought she could build a picture of it in her mind. And she had certainly experienced magic before, growing up as she had. But this was different. Much different. It…felt different. Growing up, magic had simply acted as a submissive tool, to be controlled and used. Here, the magic felt alive and free, and somehow beautiful.

"You feel it too?" Ava asked quietly, her eyes trained on Bella's face. Ava must have put away her book while Bella's attention was elsewhere. Not really knowing how to respond, Bella just nodded and gave a breathy, "Yeah". Before Bella could immerse herself once more, however, three sharp raps sounded on the compartment door. A tall boy with sandy hair and a Ravenclaw tie stood leaning on the doorframe as he stuck his head inside.

"We're getting close to Hogwarts," the boy informed them. "You lot had best get into your robes now." The three girls nodded, and the boy seemed satisfied. He looked ready to close the door and move on, but then his eyes landed on Bella. "You, are you Andromeda's sister?" he asked, looking her up and down. Bella did a bit of a double take at first; it was strange hearing her sister's full name when she always knew her by her nickname. To Bella, Andromeda wasn't her sister, Andy was. Part of Bella was surprised that he recognized her; she didn't realize she resembled her sister that much, but part was also a tad annoyed with his brusque manner.

"Yes, I am," she answered primly, morphing into every inch the pureblood princess. "I'm her younger sister, Bellatrix." The boy raised an eyebrow, but said nothing further. He simply closed the door, and Bella could hear his footsteps move down the train. Bran gave a little yawn, shook her hair out of her face, where it had fallen during her concentration, and slid her sketchbook back into her bag as Ava marked her page in her book.

"Are you two excited, then?" Bran asked absently, pulling her robes from her bag. Ava looked a bit uncomfortable. "I guess I am; I haven't really thought much about what I felt, I just knew I was coming." She opened her mouth and seemed to want to say more, but then changed her mind and closed it, starting to follow Bran's example of digging through her bag. Bella reached for her trunk, but paused for one more quick glance toward her home for the next nine months. The feel of magic wasn't as potent as before, but the castle's physical beauty remained unchanged. Bella reached for her robes with a smile growing on her face.

Antony Clearwater opened the door to his compartment and flopped unceremoniously onto the cushion beside his girlfriend of several years, Jessica Faunt.

"Didn't realize there were so many bloody compartments on this train," he grumbled, lying back onto the cushions.

"Oh, stop whining," Andromeda Black replied good-naturedly, tossing a chocolate frog at her friend's head. Antony ducked it agilely, caught it with one hand, and began undoing the wrapper.

"You'll have to do better than that, Andromeda," Antony drawled, breaking off a piece of chocolate and putting it in his mouth.

"Seeker reflexes; should have known," Andy muttered. A smug smile grew on Antony's face. "Oh, bugger it," she groaned, knowing she had just stroked his pride a bit more; the last thing Antony needed. She had known Tony Clearwater since first year when he had helped her in Charms, but he was the only one of her friends who still called her by her full first name. He apparently thought it sounded important; she just thought it sounded pretentious. More than anything, Antony loved to feel important.

"Try to make sure his head doesn't grow big enough to envelop Hogwarts, won't you?" she asked Jessica jokingly. The other girl smiled. Her light brown hair, usually a mess of curls, bobbed up and down in a nod.

"I'll do my best," Jess responded, grinning wickedly.

"Wh- th-" Tony spluttered.

"Oh, hush," Jessica replied, and then proceeded to ensure he did so, nullifying his indignation at the same time. Andy grinned and suddenly became very interested in the scenery. Honestly, she was hard-pressed to think of a more different pair of people, and yet they somehow fit each other perfectly. Tony was the only child of a wealthy pureblood family, and very proud of it, and Jessica was the oldest of three, and a halfblood. She had grown up with her Muggle father, after her mother died in the Grindelwald wars. Despite this, her father was proud of his wife, and had learned as much as he could about magic in her memory, so he could teach his magical daughter. Despite all these differences, Antony and Jess fit. Antony helped erase some of Jess' insecurities, and in turn she managed to rein in his ego, a result which Andy was exceptionally glad of, regardless of how it came about. Tony might be annoying now, but he had been almost insufferably proud when Andy had first met him.

As they rounded a bend, Hogwarts came into sight. Despite having lived there for the better part of five years, Andy still loved to see it. It was more of a home for her than Black Manor had ever been. There, her life was nothing but walking through an endless maze of cold formality and dancing through the endless steps of tradition. Everything had to be proper, planned, and perfect. Here, Andy wasn't the "worthless chit" who had disgraced her family by becoming a Ravenclaw, instead of a Slytherin, as the Blacks would have hoped. Here, Andy wasn't crammed into the narrow box of their expectations. She glanced over at the seat opposite her, where Jessica was now resting her head on Tony's shoulder. Here, she had real friends, the kind who didn't care how pure her blood was or how much money their estate was worth. The only blemish on all this happiness in the past had been the knowledge that her little sisters were still trapped in the world she was so desperate to escape from. This year, a little of that weight had lifted. Narcissa was still at home, but that would change soon, and having Bella here was certainly better than nothing. Andy sighed, leaned back, closed her eyes, and let relaxation fall over in a way she hadn't truly allowed it to for two long months. She was almost home.

As the train jerked to a stop in Hogsmeade station, Bella, Ava, and Bran made their way out of their compartment and on to the platform.

"Where do we g-" started Bella, but she was cut off by a voice booming through the station.

"Firs' years, over here! Follow me!"

"Well, I guess that answers that particular question," Ava quipped, smirking. The three girls followed the growing crowd of students exiting the train towards the source of the voice. After several moments, they found where it was coming from, and Bella was astonished that they had missed it before. Over to one side of the station, an impossibly tall man stood towering above the first years clustering around him, who looked positively tiny in comparison. Despite his size, his face looked like that of a young man, probably no older than twenty or so. He had an unkempt beard growing over his face, and his hair was tied back in a loose, untidy horsetail.

"D'you think that's normal?" Ava hissed to Bella.

"I'm not sure; are people supposed to be that tall?" Bella muttered back. She had never seen anyone who was even within a foot and a half of this man, but she knew that her sampling was probably pitifully small.

"Maybe he got slipped some spiked Nutrient potion when he was younger," Bran put in thoughtfully. "But that wouldn't really explain it completely, because..." Bran's voice dropped until she switched from talking to her friends to talking to herself.

As more and more first years crowded around, the immobile circle grew, an island in the sea of moving students. "All the firs' years are here, then?" the man asked, looking around. He raised his voice to a booming yell. "Oi, any firs' years out there? If there are, come on over here". A few final stragglers made their way over, but the group seemed to be complete. "Right. Looks like we've got everyone. Let's go!"

"Boats," Bella grumbled. "Did it really have to be boats?"

"What would you have preferred, flying horses?" Ava retorted, still a little prickly from the wave that had come up over the side of their boat and almost carried away her book.

"I just don't like water, that's all," Bella said uncomfortably, "I never have."

The new students followed a tall thin man in periwinkle blue robes to the top of a staircase, where they all stopped in front of a pair of double doors.

"My name," the man said, his voice calm and even, "is Albus Dumbledore. I am the Professor of Transfiguration and the Deputy Headmaster here at Hogwarts. Now, when I open these doors, you will join your classmates in the Great Hall, where you will be sorted into your houses. Any questions?"

Silence fell over the students. "Well, in that case, let us begin." He opened the door, and stepped inside..

All the first years crowded into the hall, and Dumbledore walked to the front of the room, where a ragged black hat lay on a stool. "As I call your name, you will come up and put the hat on your head, and you will be sorted into your house." Seeing nods of understanding through the crowd of first years, Dumbledore pulled a yellowed list from his pocket. "Atley, Natalie" Dumbledore began, and a pixie-like girl with short red hair bounced up the stairs to put the hat on her head. Bella let her eyes wander throughout the hall as the professor called other names. The Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables were on her left, she could see, and the Ravenclaw and Slytherin ones on her right. After searching the Ravenclaw table for a moment, Bella locked eyes with Andy. Her older sister gave her a smile, and mouthed, "Don't worry," Bella mouthed back, "I'll try" just as the name, "Black, Bellatrix" rang throughout the hall. She walked timidly up to the stool, and the hat was placed on her head, where its weight sat snugly between her ears. Andy had refused to tell her exactly how sorting worked, saying it was tradition to find out in your first year and not before, and so Bella was a bit surprised when she heard a voice whispering in her ear. _"Ahh, another Black. You are a confusing bunch, and you're no exception to that. There's intelligence here, oh yes, and loyalty as well,"_ the hat mused. Bella swallowed, biting her lip. The thought of someone rifling through her thoughts like a spellbook made her nervous. _"But there's also the desire to rise above, to be better than your peers."_ Bella bit down harder. _"Ahh, you aren't sure you like that, are you? Well, you're going to have to learn to accept it in SLYTHERIN."_

Bella wasn't sure what to think as she took the hat from her head and walked to the Slytherin table. She knew that their whole family had been in Slytherin, except for Andy. She had always been the one Bella could turn to. Would Andy be disgusted with her now; would she think that Bella was just like their parents? Bella shoved these concerns somewhere deep inside herself. Now wasn't the time to think about that, she told herself firmly. She twisted her newly green tie around her finger as she waited for more names to be called.

"Kelly, Ava," Dumbledore announced, his voice filling the room. Ava got up, and walked up to the pedestal where the hat lay. She began to feel a bit nervous, but then scolded herself for it. _It's just a hat,_ she rationalized to herself. She was going to be in one of the houses; that much was certain, and since she didn't care either way, or at least told herself that, what was there to worry about? Luckily, there wasn't much time for any sort of worrying, since before Ava knew it, the hat was on her head.

_"Hmm, this is interesting,"_ a voice in her head murmured. It took her a moment to register that the voice wasn't coming from in her head, but from within the hat itself. _"Lots of pride, lots of goals you wish to accomplish, and yet a strong protectiveness towards your sister." _

"Well, just put me wherever I can keep from getting bored," Ava snapped, discomforted by having someone, or something, inside her thoughts.

The hat gave a surprisingly human-like laugh. "Be careful what you wish for, especially in your new house of SLYTHERIN". The hat screamed the last word for all for all for the hall to hear. "Well," Ava mused. "At least there's nothing to be nervous about anymore." With that, she made her way, a little awkwardly, to the Slytherin table, where Bella was grinning broadly and clapping in the same half-bored way as the rest of the table. They looked at each other once Ava had found her seat. They both knew what would come next.

"Kelly, Branwen," Dumbledore read, and Bran rose and advanced towards the hat's stool. She didn't think the hat could actually read her mind in the way that a wizard using something like Legilimency could, but the idea still unnerved her. She placed the hat on her head, and braced herself slightly. For several seconds, nothing happened.

"Well?" Bran asked, a tad impatient to remove the…thing.

"_I'm trying to find where you should belong for the next seven years, do you really want it to be a spur of the moment decision?"_ the hat snapped back.

"It seemed faster with my friends," Bran muttered under her breath.

"_I've noticed that it always seems slower when you're in the spotlight yourself."_

Bran considered this, and, to avoid thinking about the fact that she was actually having a mental conversation with a centuries-old, sentient hat, her eyes drifted to the ceiling. She had been too preoccupied to notice it on her way in, but now Bran couldn't help but stare. If she hadn't known better, she would have sworn that they were in an open arena under the clear night sky. Stars twinkled as the last of the sun's rays fell below the horizon, and the moon began to rise. "How on earth can they do that?" Bran murmured. "It must be really advanced magic to have it respond like that."

If a grin could be conveyed through a sound, Bran could have sworn the hat was doing it just then. _"I know you want to be with your sister,"_ it whispered in her ear, _"but I'm afraid that can't be, since you'll find your home in RAVENCLAW." _

Bran's head spun as she took the hat off and headed for the Ravenclaw table. If only she hadn't lost her concentration, she might have been able to convince the hat to put her with her sister. Bran plastered a grin on her face as she sat down at her new table, but Ava's crestfallen face at the other table better matched her feelings.

As the last student, "Zabini, Andrea," became a Slytherin, the headmaster, Professor Dippet, stood up at the head table. "Now," he boomed. "I'm sure that all present are eagerly awaiting a meal, so I see no reason to delay it further. Let the feast begin!" As the words came out of his mouth, the plates before them filled with food.

As her housemates chatted happily around her, Andy sat, seemingly fascinated by the pasta she had been twirling on the end of her fork for the past five minutes. It was probably a defining characteristic of Ravenclaw house that no one saw this as odd in the least; staring off into space was practically an admission requirement. Andy was glad to be left alone; she just needed to think right now. Bella was a Slytherin. Well, it wasn't exactly as if it was a complete surprise, Andy told herself. Blacks always were, until Andy had come along, and it had been difficult to convince the hat out of putting her in Slytherin. When she had first come to Hogwarts, she had just come off a nasty argument with her mother, and was determined not to fit in with the family status quo. The hat might be stubborn, but it had soon found itself no match for the formidable Miss Black. But, Andy told herself, that was just it. The source of her discomfort. The three of them, the three sisters, had always been close. Until Andy was five, she had no one but her parents, and so when she found herself with a little sister, she threw herself into the role wholeheartedly. As Narcissa came, the threesome was completed. As they grew up, they grew up together. Even though Andy had been several years older, she had tried to include her younger sisters in as much of her life as possible; she remembered how lonely it had been for her before they had come. The three of them had always been a unit, and now, Bella's sorting almost seemed like a tie pulling her closer to the rest of the Black family, and away from Andy.

Even as she thought it, Andy knew it was stupid. After all, how many times had Andy prayed that Bella and Narcissa wouldn't have to suffer their parents' rage and dislike; that she could take the brunt of that for them? If Bella had been sorted anywhere but Slytherin, all the disappointment and distaste that had been thrown at Andy five long years ago would come her way, and Andy was glad her sister could be spared that.

Andy was stirred from her trance by Jessica, passing her a roll, and shooting her a comforting smile. Andy tried her best to return it, cursing herself for being so obviously unsettled. She joined the flow of conversation, and her worries began to retreat into her mind. One, in particular, burrowed itself deep into her subconscious, where Andy wouldn't have to see it or hear it. She didn't want to even consider the worry that wouldn't completely go away, that kept niggling at the corners of her consciousness: the worry that being a Slytherin somehow made Bella more like the parents Andy had been wishing she could escape from ever since she first began to grow outside their proscribed box. Andy knew she couldn't even let herself think that, because Bella would need her, like she always had, and Andy couldn't bring her distrust in place of support. She never had, and she couldn't start now.

The Slytherin dungeons were, by virtue of being on the lowest level of the castle, substantially larger than the dormitory areas of the other houses, which allowed them a bit more room to branch out. The main common room itself was at the end of a long stone passageway lined with ornate metalworking, behind a tapestry of a tall nobleman in a flowing emerald cloak. The common room itself was a strange mixture of elegance and comfort, beauty and practicality. Green chairs embroidered in black were grouped together in huddles around the room, forming a rough half circle around the fireplace. Above the fireplace, some sort of charm had been cast on the stone to make it transparent, and the eerie blue-green light of water dancing in the lake fell on the stone walls. The fire itself looked unreal, burning black instead of orange, providing the heat the dungeon desperately needed without giving off any real light. All the lighting in the common room came from torches set into the walls that gave off the same eerie light as the lake, although a good deal brighter. The dormitory where the first year girls had been assigned was off a small hallway to the left of the fireplace, and down several steps. There were 4 girls other than Bella in her year; Ava was one of them, and she had forgotten the names of the other 3. It didn't matter, she told herself, she'd learn them soon enough. The three girls Bella didn't know were placed in one room, and Bella and Ava claimed the other, since there was an uneven number of first year girls.

As the hours wore on, quiet fell over Hogwarts school, wrapping around it like a well worn blanket. Newly sorted students and upperclassmen alike were resting for the next day's classes, from the highest tower to the lowest dungeon. However, late into the night, Bella's eyes came open. She rubbed her hands to them, and was about go back to sleep when she noticed that the bed across from hers was empty. Bella frowned. She got up, hissing a little as her feet connected with the cold stone. Ava wasn't in the room; that was for certain. Bella padded silently into the hallway and into the common room, now empty of students. Or rather, it was almost empty. Next to the huge fireplace, a small figure sat, staring up into the watery depths of the lake. Bella hesitated for a minute, and then two, unsure what to do. Then, she stepped into the room, keeping quiet as she approached.

Ava stared up into the water. She was so far down, she wondered what would happen if the wall broke, and all that water just came rushing down. It must be safe, she thought to herself, but it didn't seem to be at first glance. You couldn't even tell the wall was there unless you looked; otherwise it just looked like the water was floating along an invisible barrier. Why did they have to be so far down? It just felt abnormal for Ava, used to the open air, to be this far below anything even close to fresh air. Why couldn't she be- but that was stupid, there was no point thinking about it now. Things had happened, and you couldn't go back and change them, no matter how much you wanted to.

Without warning, Bella Black came out of nowhere, and seated herself next to Ava on the chair. Ava was hard-pressed to keep from jumping up, she was so surprised. Her surprise only increased when Bella didn't say a word, just joined her in staring at the water. So, for a few more moments, they both just watched the currents of the lake move, with the occasional fish swimming by.

"You know," Bella whispered, so softly Ava almost missed it, "I miss my sister too."

Ava didn't know what to say to that. She opened her mouth to say that she didn't miss her sister, but closed it when she realized that it was a bit stupid to lie in this situation, since there would have obviously had to have been some reason for her to sit out in the common room like this in the middle of the night. "This is the first time that I haven't had her with me," she whispered. "You know we're twins; we never really did much separately. Even when we did different things, we were never more than a room or two apart. Now, it just feels so strange for Bran not to be here."

"I remember when Andy, my sister, left for Hogwarts," Bella murmured. "I was a bloody wreck for two whole days."

It was hard to imagine Bella being "a bloody wreck". She always seemed so cool and controlled, but I guess it was hard to tell with things like that. You can always hide things. Bella got up to walk back to the dormitory, and a few seconds later, Ava followed suit. They walked down the hallway in silence, and made their way to their own beds. As Ava lay down on her bed, she heard Bella from across the room. "We'll figure something out, you know. About our sisters. Andy always said that you could… figure something out, I mean, if you tried hard enough."

"Andy sounds like she knows what she's talking about, so I believe her," Ava said, trying to hide a yawn. A few moments later, she added "Thanks," just as she slipped into sleep.

_Hopefully there will be another chapter soon, but, as I said, no promises, because they always come back to bite me. Please review; what you like, what you may not like. And if I don't update after a while, feel free to PM/otherwise contact me to "encourage" me to. Thank you so much for not giving up on this story!_


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